Better times ahead for airlines

"Now, if the crude comes down and the airlines survive this downturn for at least six months, there will be no looking back," said Nikhil Vora, managing director of IDFC-SSKI, a financial advisory firm.

He said cancellation of flights by Kingfisher also helped other carriers in terms of passenger carriage and revenue.

"They should also utilise this time in rationalising their operations in terms of costs and make it more resilient to earn profits," he said.